A-Z Oneshots
by L. Drayton
Summary: Makoto and Haruka have had ups and downs in their friendship. Twists and turns along the road that always brought them back together. Here, you will find an assortment of MakoHaru friendship/preslash one-shots of varying genres covering some events from that road they walk together.
1. A - Alive

**Hey there Free! fandom! I have been in you for a while now, but I've never actually done anything to make myself known here. I did write a rubbish little one-shot but I was so disappointed in it on reflection that I chose to take it down in the end. So this is my first real thing here and I thought I'd start big. I am attempting an A-Z. First one ever, so lets hope it'll be good. Varying themes, lengths and times - there'll be something for everyone. If you don't like this one, maybe the next one is perfect for you instead? Enjoy ~**

**Olivia. x**

**A**live

Haruka walked down the empty dark pathway, his bare feet slapping against the smooth floor with every step. He held his shoes in one hand, his shirt and trousers in the other. The warm breeze was gentle and inviting making the walk relaxing.

It was late (or early) at night and due to this there was silence all around him apart from the low laps of the sea to his left. Haruka liked silence. A lot of noise and too many gossiping people annoyed him, because there was no room in all the sound to breathe. He'd thought up until recently that the noise of everyday life was unavoidable and that he'd never find a release apart from in the water, where he could just about drown them out. As it turned out however, he'd found solace in late night (or early morning) strolls, usually setting an alarm for about 3:00am to wake him up. He didn't mind that it interrupted his sleep: it seemed as though it was a small price to pay for some peace of mind.

That night, he'd found the sea particularly inviting and had succumbed to its whispering calls.

Haruka had no regrets. By the time he'd arrived home, he felt no inclination to return to bed. He felt like staying up to think about things, but he couldn't find anything to think on. In the end, he pulled out an old sketch pad collection from his younger years and steadily flicked through it. There were a few drawing which were well deserving of a few cringes, and Haruka smiled at his own mistakes, grabbing a pencil to rectify them in some cases.

There was a particularly awful rendition of a clownfish which the boy was adjusting when he got a call. Hesitantly, he stood to find the phone to answer. He pressed it to his ear but didn't speak.

"Hello? Haru?" The raspy voice came crackling through the receiver, barely familiar but recognisable nonetheless.

"M-Makoto?" Haru asked. Why was Makoto calling him at half four in the morning?

"Ah, yes. Sorry did I wake you?"

"No," was the honest reply. Haruka sat on the floor next to his bed, leaning against the solid post holding it up.

"I... I just felt... Look, this sounds stupid but I just wanted to hear you talk."

"Why?"

"I err... I had a nightmare..."

"Did I...?"

"Yes."

There was a small moment of silence between the two friends. Haru imagined what it'd be like to have to go through Makoto dying, even in a dream. It'd be unbearable for him. He was the only person in Haruka's life who'd ever accepted him from the beginning and stuck by him through everything. He could rely on Makoto for anything, how would it be to not have that solidity in him?

"I'm sorry. Do you want to come round?" Haru offered, feebly. Of course, he'd love for Makoto to come round to his if it'd reassure him a little, but obviously he couldn't accept the offer (it was too late). The two just stayed on the line, occasionally uttering a few words but not very often. It was strange to Haruka to have to be reassuring to someone. Most of the time he had little sympathy for other people's pathetic plights, labelling every one as attention seeking. Luckily, few of his friends ever had any problems and if they did they never turned to him. So this whole situation was decidedly alien to Haru, but (unbeknownst to him) he was doing an amazing job at soothing his best friends irrational yet poignant fears.

"So in the dream... How did I die?" Haru asked, the nagging curiosity finally breaking through.

"You were sleeping. Just sleeping. But I... I couldn't wake you up. I felt for a pulse but..." Makoto said with a heavy heart. It had been an abnormal dream so it had hit him harder than any other.

"It's alright. I'd never do that to you, Makoto. Never." There was a light chuckle on the other end.

"It's nice to think it's something you can control but somehow, I don't think it works like that."

"How do you know?"

"Haru... If you did die... I'd follow you." The raven haired boy closed his eyes. He wanted to say 'No, you shouldn't even think like that,' but he knew he'd do the same.

"So would I."

There was silence.

After a while Haru fell asleep leaning against the wooden post of his bed. He knew he'd regret it, but he was too tired to move to the mattress. The phone became sandwiched twixt his ear and his shoulder, still on the line. The sketchbook lay in his lap, clownfish with a lopsided eye looking straight at Haru. On the other end of the line, Makoto sat at the kitchen table, phone pressed to his head as he listened to the soft breathing. It was unlike him to react so adversely to a dream, but it had been horrific. He'd missed out the part when telling his friend about it when Haru told him he hated him... and the part when Ren and Ran had run up to Haruka to see if he was okay only to find that he wasn't and had run off, tears streaming down their young faces, hatred for their brother in their eyes.

He'd failed to save him, but it had only been a dream.

The breathing on the other end reassured him.

Haru was alive. He wouldn't ever hate him. His siblings would never hate him.

Haru was breathing.

Tea in hand, Makoto Tachibana made his way to his room. Cautiously he settled back under the covers and shut his eyes. He listened to the now snoring on the other end for a few moments then steadily pressed 'End call,' reassurance pulsating around his head. Makoto and Haruka both slept well into the next day, rendering themselves late for school. Neither cared much. Haru was alive, what else mattered?


	2. B - Born

**Chapter 2 or whatever, I guess it's more like one-shot 2 because these don't link together. Um, this one is a little more fluffy and cute and less angsty than the last one. I enjoyed writing it because it gave me a chance to look into Haruka's relationship with Ren and Ran a little more. Also, I'm not too sure on many points in this. I don't know if the ages are right or whether this all fits together, but I like this period and the characters. It makes it all very happy and fluffy. What else? Oh yes! in this one-shot, I use -kun. I don't think that suffixes will be something I will continue to use, but they may crop up in this fic when I think it's right for them to be used... they may also be wrong. SO OTHER THAN THAT, I hope you like it ~**

**Olivia. x**

**B**orn**  
**

In the earlier years of their friendship, Haruka and Makoto faced a change which both had never experienced before and would never experience again (most likely). Neither were fully prepared and neither fully understood what was happening due to their being at a tender age. As a bystander, Mrs. Tachibana thought to herself often that the pair had no idea that this would change their lives forever, and she was right in some respects.

You see, Mrs. Tachibana was pregnant and about to have two beautiful babies, younger siblings to Makoto. As Haruka was close to Makoto at this time, he signed himself up for helping to look after the new borns. Of course, he never voiced this out loud to anyone, but he made a point to always be nearby if he was needed.

About three days before the twins were to be born Makoto and Haruka were playing on the floor of Haruka's lounge under the supervision of Grandma Nanase, a kind old woman who was welcoming and supportive. Haru adored her and was very open with her when it came to conversation. Makoto and the Tachibanas knew her well also, due to the amount of times their lives crossed paths because of play-dates and sleepovers. When she heard that Mrs. Tachibana was pregnant, she made Haruka bake cakes for the family with her which she sent round in a basket with pink and blue ribbon.

"Makoto-kun, I think it's time for you to go home now," the woman said with a smile. Makoto looked at Haru who gave him a grin and offered to walk him home. "How sweet," Grandma Nanase said as the two left for the Tachibana's.

It wasn't too dark so the way was easy to see. Haruka challenged Makoto to a race and (without waiting for an answer) hurled himself down the path. His friend followed behind, laughing and calling for Haru to wait. When they reached the house, the two boys were both out of breath and laughing.

Three sharp knocks on the door and no-one answered. Makoto walked to the window and peered in. No-one was home. It was then that he noticed a note on the front door and jumped up to take it down. Quickly he read it out loud to Haru.

"'Makoto, Mummy and I have gone to the hospital with Aunt Aiko because we think she is having your brother and sister now. There's a key under the mat if you'd prefer to stay home alone, but I don't think Grandma Nanase would mind if you wanted to sleep over at Haruka's tonight. Tell her I'll pick you up at some point tomorrow. Be safe, son.' Wow! Mummy's having Ren and Ran!" Makoto grinned. Haru laughed and grabbed Makoto's hands, twirling him round before they set off back to Haruka's.

"Grandma won't mind at all if you want to stay tonight! Gee, you could stay forever and I don't think she's mind! We love you!" Haru was buzzing from excitement. It was almost time! His best friend was going to be a big brother! He could finally show the Tachibanas how much he appreciates them by offering his help. Maybe he could bake some more cakes... that would be fun!

When they arrived home they explained the situation to Grandma Nanase who didn't mind in the slightest but still sent the pair to bed so that they would have energy the next day. Makoto and Haruka lay side-by-side in the bed, whispering to each other about what was happening and how exciting it was. Because it was exciting. Eventually they drifted off to sleep, minds buzzing with anticipation for the next day.

That next day, Makoto's heart grew ten sizes. The news that Ren and Ran had been born hit him like a wave and soon he was on his way to the hospital. Haruka wanted to go too, but Grandma Nanase said it would be inappropriate right now (it was a time for family) so he stayed and baked biscuits.

There was something different about the way Makoto walked when Haru finally got to see him two days later. He was a little taller and his hair was smarter and there was something else Haru couldn't quite place. However, he was just as kind and just as playful and the two boys got on as well as they always had. During that time when they were playing though, the shorter of the two couldn't contain the amount he was looking forward to seeing the two babies. After a while, Mr. Tachibana called Haruka and Makoto to him. It was time to see them.

Grandma Nanase sat in the room with Mrs. Tachibana and Mrs. Tachibana's sister, Aunt Aiko. Haruka saw the two tiny bundles in Mrs. Tachibana's arms but chose not to walk closer. It had only just dawned on him that he'd never seen new people before. What would they look like? Would they look like Makoto?

"Don't be shy, Haruka-kun," Mrs. Tachibana beckoned.

Slowly, he walked towards her.

When he saw the babies' faces he was confused. Were they alive? Why were their eyes not open? Oh, were they asleep? Why did one of them have a thumb in its mouth? They look exactly the same... why?

"This is Ren," Makoto said, gesturing to the sleeping baby on the left. "And this is Ran."

"They're... they're lovely," Haruka whispered.

Because they were.

They were completely different to anything Haru had ever seen. Their little faces were soft looking and peaceful, innocence laced into their closed eyes. These two babies would mean everything to Makoto and him.

It all starts now.

Here.

Today.

Their adventure.

And Haruka was a part of it.


	3. C - Caterpillar

**Well hey there guys and gals, here's one-shot 3! Yay! So, I was a little stuck for a title for this to prompt me, but then I saw one of these critters on my windowsill and I was like... "Excellent..." and used that. Hope you enjoy ~**

**Olivia. x**

**C**aterpillar

It was disgusting. Hideous. Grotesque.

But this little thing would one day become a beautiful creature. Give it a chance to bloom and it will become far prettier than any flower, free to roam the skies and the land and to captivate the eyes of the young and the old. But for now, it was utterly disgusting.

Haru looked at it with mild interest as it shuffled across his desk. The caterpillar. The thing which was currently causing Makoto to breathe incredibly quickly as the teacher droned on about dividing fractions. Haruka considered flicking it somewhere away from him, but there were students in every direction, and he generally preferred not to cause a commotion in his classes. Instead, he chose to redirect his attention to Makoto.

White as a sheet and breathing heavier than an opossum, his eyes were trained directly on the small insect as it moved closer to him. Was he scared? The thought made Haru smirk a little, but the smile quickly washed itself from his face.

"Makoto?" Haru decided to whisper. Makoto took his eyes off of the caterpillar to look at his friend. He smiled then pretended to work out a question in his book.

"Are you-"

"Yes!" Makoto interrupted, predicting Haru's next words. Haru raised an eyebrow but looked back to the caterpillar. It was closer to Makoto than him now, so he gently placed his pencil in front of it, obstructing his path. Makoto watched through his fringe but refrained from commenting.

Yes, caterpillars were truly disgusting. Apparently you could get poisonous ones. Would they be poisonous once transformed into butterflies? Perhaps. Although Haru had never heard of a poisonous butterfly. Wasn't the Monarch poisonous? Ukiyo-sensei once taught a biology lesson on butterflies. Haru wondered how she was doing. She had been a teacher of science in his primary school and he remembered her well for her boring lectures which were occasionally punctuated with notes to write down.

As Haruka let his thoughts mill about, he noticed the caterpillar shuffling round the pencil.

_Determined little thing._

The boy watched his friend's eyes widen a little more and in response he used the pencil to flick the insect back in his direction a little. It landed onhis notebook and Haru cringed. Gross.

When the lesson had ended, Haruka made a point to entice the thing onto his pencil and out of the window, watching Makoto out of the corner of his eye as he let out an almost silent sigh and proceeded to pack up his belongings.

So Makoto was scared of caterpillars. Interesting.

Of all the things to be scared of, why caterpillars? What could have possibly been the reason behind that?

As they were walking home that day, Haruka started to formulate a plan to discover how far this fear went. It was Makoto's birthday the day after next, after all... that should make things a little easier...

C:OOOOOD- (meant to be a caterpillar for the intermission)

"Happy Birthday!" came the uproar from the class. Makoto laughed and soon became surrounded by a mountain of presents and other things. Haru sighed as Makoto was stolen away from him to open presents from people who barely knew him, and reached into his bag for his creation.

Living alone with nothing to do all night made it easy to dedicate hours to making a tiny wooden caterpillar look-a-like. Carefully Haru managed to place it on his desk under a birthday card. Due to the sheer amount of loud and rowdy people, he was able to do it subtly and without being noticed.

He waited.

"Ah thank you, Togo-chan! They're really nice!" Makoto smiled as he placed the packet of tissues down. It was then that his hand reached for the card. He lifted it up and Haruka studied his expression. Makoto noticed the 'caterpillar' and looked at it hesitantly. Haru saw the fright flash across his eyes for a second before he realised it was just a wooden replica. He picked it up.

"Who made this? It's really good," he commented, masterfully covering his momentary blip. Haru smiled, satisfied with the reaction and preparing to question him when the oppurtunity arose. Of course, no-one owned up to making the little sculpture.

When class started, the morning announcements caused enough of a ruckus for Haruka to turn to Makoto.

"So you're scared of caterpillars."

Makoto scoffed.

"Why do you think that?" he asked.

"Because I can see that you are," Haru said. He placed his head on his fist and looked at his friend who just sighed in response: he was cornered. "Why?"

"... There was this one-" Makoto began, but he cut himself off and looked at Haruka. "Everyone's scared of something," he said.

"Of course," Haru agreed. Makoto took a breath.

"So you won't laugh?"

"No."

"... Well, there was this one time when I was little and I was on holiday with my family. Ren and Ran hadn't been born. We went to Brazil, remember?"

Haruka thought hard. Yes, he did remember Makoto going on a two-week holiday to Brazil... well, it actually spread to three if he remembers correctly. He gave a nod.

"We were walking and I leant against a tree. It felt weird and suddenly hurt really bad. Turns out it was a group of these caterpillars. I can't remember what they were called, but I got this venom poisoning and had to go to hospital for about five days. That's why we stayed longer... because I wasn't allowed out," he managed. Makoto looked uncomfortable. Really uncomfortable. Haru sat in silence thinking about a way to respond to this revelation. Maybe he should tell of his own fear...

"At least you could go to Brazil," he whispered. He was uncertain about this, but felt that such a revelation should go two ways in a friendship.

"Hmm? What do you mean?"

"...I can't even step on the plane."

"Why not?"

"Because... because I'm scared of enclosed spaces. That's why I love to swim so much... there's so much space and freedom."

Haruka let out a sigh and looked into Makoto's eyes. He looked puzzled.

"But we go in lifts and other things, why didn't I notice before?"

"I can cover it better than you," Haru smirked, causing Makoto to smile too.

"I guess everyone really _is _scared of something."

"I guess."


	4. D - Detective

**Waddup broskis? Hehehehue sorry, been watching too much 50% OFF. It's good, I like Haru's little inside conversations XD Anyone here watch it? Anyway this is about a little detective job Haruka and Makoto did when they were around eight. Haru's always been quiet, but when his grandma was alive he was a little more into playing games and socializing. It's hard to describe, but I just feel like he is how he is in the anime due to his grandmother's passing. It's set before Mrs. Tachibana was pregnant with Ren and Ran but Aunt Aiko is here because (also in my imagination basically) she likes to visit because her own home life is unstable. Um, so this is also a little bit of fun. No angst or anything, all fun! As always I hope you enjoy and if this one-shot wasn't really your thing then don't worry because the next ones may be completely different. ~**

**Olivia. x**

**D**etective  


The news came through to Haruka via Makoto that Mrs. Tachibana had lost an earing. Now, to Haruka and Makoto this wasn't a trivial thing. This was huge. An urgent matter which needed to be resolved (preferably by using some sort of game). Haru in particular spent a lot of time thinking about how to turn it into a game until finally he decided that it should be a race. Mrs. Tachibana agreed to the terms (used to having both boys digging around in the house due to all the different games they had) and set the two loose, going to prepare a big lunch. To spice up the 'game' Mrs. Tachibana told the two that she needed the elegant earring by that evening so the first person to find it would get an unknown personal prize from her.

"Okay boys? So remember: don't go into Aunt Aiko's room, will you? She's trying to sleep so promise you won't disturb her?"

"We promise," Makoto spoke for both of them while Haru nodded absent-mindedly, eyes shielding his plans.

"Alright. Have fun," she dismissed. Makoto immediately ran up to the bedroom to start looking. Haru however, just stood there. He examined the room and then asked politely for some paper and a pen. Mrs. Tachibana gave him some and he thanked her.

"When did you last see the earring?" he asked. Surprised by the question, Makoto's mother told him after a slight hesitation.

"Yesterday afternoon." Haruka nodded and scribbled it down.

"Where?"

"Well, I took it off to have a shower after I got in from shopping which was around... two? When I got out it had been taken by my husband with the rest of my clothes into the bedroom, but I didn't see it again. Apparently my husband says he dropped it somewhere." Haru wrote down the new information and thanked his interviewee before leaving her in peace. He was off to find Mr. Tachibana. On the way he stopped to play with the kitten, but it ran away out the front door before he could truly play with it.

Sighing, he went to the office and lightly rapped on the door.

"Hello?" came from inside.

"Excuse me," Haru spoke, edging inside, "can I ask you some questions about your wife's missing earring?"

"Sure," Mr. Tachibana agreed. He spun around in his swivel chair so he was facing the boy.

"When did you last see the earring?"

"Yesterday afternoon." Haruka nodded, jotting down the expected answer.

"Where?"

"In the landing. I dropped it on the floor then forgot about it. When I remembered this morning, it was gone." Haru placed the pen against his chin and nodded, mind ticking over.

"Are you having fun playing today, Haru-kun?"

"Yes. Thank you for answering my questions." Without waiting for a response, the youth went to look on the landing. It wasn't going to be there, that much was obvious. As he was walking past the front door he saw the cat come in again through the cat flap. It only opened for that cat. Haru wasn't sure how it worked but it was very clever.

On the landing was no trace of the earring, but there was Makoto.

"You won't find it like that," Haru tried to help.

"How else am I to find it? Using my ears?" Makoto laughed at his own joke and went on looking at the floor, making Haruka roll his eyes. He went outside and sat on the grass, thinking.

If the earring was last seen on the landing, what could have moved it? Why would it have been moved? Someone could have kicked it by accident, but then it'd still be on the landing. To distract himself, Haru started to fiddle with the catflap. How did it work?

He read the words on it which said something about it being 'Premium Magnetic Quality' but that didn't help him at all! Frustrated, he leant up against the wall. Wait- magnetic! The cat must have a magnet on it's collar or something which enabled it to pass through the flap. That's how it worked... but if the cat had a magnet, would that mean it can pick up things too? Things like... earrings?!

Quickly, Haru got to his feet and went into the house. He was now searching for a different thing - the cat. He asked Mrs. Tachibana if she's seen it and she reported that it was just under the table.

"Given up on y poor little earring now, have you?" she sing-songed.

"No," Haru replied, slipping under the table.

There he saw the shine of a stone under the feline's neck. He'd found it! The boy reached out and snatched it up, scaring the cat away out of the house once again.

"I've found your earring, but I think Makoto's doing more work to find it than I am, so can I please leave it on the floor in the kitchen where he'll find it? Will you play along and give him the prize?"

Mrs. Tachibana was shocked. She thought that earring was lost and gone forever, and she certainly didn't expect one of the children to find it! And then Haruka didn't even want the prize (which was a warm cookie out of the oven). _Such a kind heart. _

"Of course. Well done, Haruka-kun."

"You mean _Makoto_-kun," he laughed, and dropped the earring near the door.

After an hour, Haru had to go home for his dinner so he never saw Makoto get the prize he thought his friend deserved. Unfortunately, Makoto never found the earring so Mrs. Tachibana had to pretend finding it four days later. It was hers and Haruka's little secret, and they are both keeping it to this day.


	5. E - Entity

**Hey there guys! If you're looking for good quality writing, I suggest you turn away from this particular one-shot of mine. I wrote this at 2:00am because I thought there was a ghost in the next room. But if you're looking for a light-hearted bit of scared!Haru and friendship then look no further. Scared!Haru should be a thing. There should be more of these around. Enjoy yeah? Cool, you do that ~**

**Olivia. x**

**E**ntity

BANG!

Haruka jumped in response to the loud noise coming from his room. He carefully placed his chopsticks down on his plate and stood. It was late and his home was barely lit, which gave an eerie atmosphere to the situation. Slowly, the black haired boy crept towards the source of the noise. Now, Haruka Nanase was not afraid of many things. Not spiders, the dark or even dying but he was extremely petrified of ghosts. Ghosts, spirits, poltergeist - entities. Ever since he was a small child he'd found the prospect of a presence you couldn't see terrifying.

Entities could do things real people couldn't. They could go through walls and teleport and appear however they wanted or not even appear at all. But they could also do very human things like talk, touch... And kill.

Haru stopped walking.

Then he took a breath and placed another foot forward. BANG! Haru took off running back to the kitchen. Once safely at the door (closed, but Haru wasn't sure why he'd closed it) he took out his phone and dialed the number he knew all to well.

"Haru! What's up?"

"Makoto... Can I... Can I stay at your's tonight?" Haru muttered into the phone. He hated asking, but he knew he'd never get any sleep here. He heard another bang followed by a strangled scream of sorts. Without waiting for an answer from Makoto he hurled himself out of the house and down the steps.

"-says it's fine."

"Sorry what?"

"Mum says it's fine. May I ask why you have to come at such short notice?"

"No." The boy broke into a sprint, the alleyways and shadows all looking so abnormal and sinister. He kept his friend on the line throughout his run. Soon he was at the door. He hung up, knocked and then looked at Makoto's smiling face.

"You didn't bring any spare clothes," the taller of the two commented as they sat in his room, Makoto on the bed and Haruka on the makeshift mattress on the floor.

"No."

"So... Why'd you come over?" Haruka let out a sigh. He knew he wouldn't get out of an explanation forever, but it was just such a chore. Makoto would laugh at his extreme reaction and think him a sissy, while Haru's face would glow with shame. It wasn't something to look forward to.

"There's some sort of... Entity in my house."

"Oh." Silence. That was it? Just an 'oh?' No shame? No laughing?

"Well, best get to sleep then. Night, Haru-"

"Hold on. You have nothing else to say on this?"

"Should I have something else to say?"

"I dunno... I just..."

"You just what?"

"Doesn't matter. Good night."

The next morning the two boys went back to Haru's home (Haru walking a little behind Makoto). They opened the door and walked inside. Haru's dinner still sat on the table and the door was still closed. Makoto opened it and walked towards the bedroom, where Haru had reported the sound had come from.

"Woah," Makoto breathed upon seeing the room.

Books lay all over the floor, obviously having been knocked over. There was a smashed glass too and a... a... what was that? Edging over the debris, Makoto made his way towards the small black thing in the far corner of the room. Haru stayed in the doorway. Suddenly, the investigating boy let out a laugh. He chuckled loudly, picking up the small thing and turbo round to face his confused friend. Haru's eyes widened in realisation and then he smiled a little too at his own stupidity.

In Makoto's arms was a tiny kitten, obviously the source of all the bangs and the tiny scream-like noise Haruka had heard the previous night. Makoto deduced that it had got in through the open window and had caused a ruckus whilst 'visiting.' Haru was relieved that he wasn't being haunted, but at the same time he did find it exceedingly disturbing when Makoto showed him the collar tag which read, in shiny gold letters: Entity. © 2014 Microsoft Terms Privacy & cookies Developers English (United Kingdom)


	6. F - Funeral

**Angst! If you're looking for a good question to ask yourself today, may I suggest 'what the hell is this' to be the one? I don't even know the answer, so you have to work it out for yourself. I wrote this because I wanted to go into how Haru must have felt at the funeral. Also, I believe that to some extent the people around him at that time wanted him to be stoic and emotionless, so I'm trying to show how bad it is to do this. I think I just about managed to pull off how Makoto is making Haru rebel against the orders so he can be free, but it's too late really because he's been empty for so long. Enjoy or whatever is the appropriate command for this. Remember, if this isn't your thing there will be different one's to engross your seeing-tools in~**

**Olivia. x**

**F**eel

It was his first funeral and he suspected it would not be his last. For a child it would usually be hard to understand, but when you had little to ground yourself to it became second nature to think further into things than others dared, so he knew there would be many people to send a goodbye to. His parents, his friends and maybe himself if one belies in an afterlife. For the others though, he knew there would be a difference. One crucial and insurmountable difference: he would feel something. Right now, only nothing was inside him. It had all been knocked away. If his grandmother were standing beside him then, he would be allowed to feel things.

_"Haruka-kun, you have to show no emotion. If you do, you will make Mother and I look bad, understand?"_

It's like he had been given a drug, when it reality it was more of a smack. A harsh clap into reality which wasn't for the faint-hearted, but for the strong. There were many people, only he few he recognised. He saw his friend a few rows behind with his sobbing family. That must be a release.

_"Cry? Of course you can't. Why would you want to, anyway? I thought you'd done all of that..."_

He couldn't be the only one who wanted to care, but as he searched the faces of his parents he struggled to see any of that emotion which they'd learnt to cover so well. He knew his mother was sad, but why was she ashamed to show it? Was it really because of her 'image'? Others weren't holding back from letting any tears loose. His father was probably as emotionless as he appeared. He had no reason to feel anything, after all. He hadn't ever said a word of any meaning to his mother-in-law, nor had he heard any from her. They didn't have a 'close' relationship. Mr. Tachibana was more of a son-in-law to her than his father.

After the 'service' he went to find somewhere to relax. It was hard holding everything in, but it got easier the less company he had. The less eyes to criticise, the more freedom to fail (should that occur). He found a lone fallen tree. It was thick and heavy, old and probably wise as the world if it had a mouth to speak, which it did not. He thought of this though, rather than what this day would be labelled as on his calendar for many years. _Old Tree, is it right to do this? To not feel? _Why was there no answer?

"Are..."

_So you do speak, Tree. Answer my question then. What is right and what is wrong?_

"Are you alright?"

The wise old tree wasn't speaking, it was simply his friend. His one, true friend. More of a parent to him than the ones he had.

"Yes," he said. For he was. He was alright, because there was nothing to not be alright about. There was nothing to feel and nothing to be. Nothing to be not alright in him. Despite this, the true friend sat beside him on the old tree and let out a deep breath. It wasn't quite a sigh, because to call it a sigh would be to identify it by name, which wasn't in truth possible.

"You know, I think mother said the festival's coming up. Let's go together," the true friend tried. He thought. A festival? Well, that would require feeling, wouldn't it? Happiness, yes, but still feeling. Was that allowed? Perhaps he should ask the old tree... Or peraps he should just agree to the suggestion and try to fight the drug which was slapped into him.

"Of course, if you don't want to I understand because..." the words got lost somewhere between their formation and their cessation. He looked at a different tree whose blossoms were being sent about to populate the air. It looked beautiful and he felt a little sensation of awe prick up through the syrup-like numbness of the drug. As he tried to listen more to the true friend's words, more spikes cut through the lifelessness within him, but they were all for the true friend. Then it came, the feeling which completely disintegrated the syrup, casting it way from his body as an antibody does an infection. For then he felt love.

"I'd like to go."

Thesyrup never trully reached the height it did that day, but after then it never fully could be expelled again. Some days were worse than others, but most days he could feel it in him. Blocking the right feelings from coming and stopping the blossoms from the tree looking beautiful. Whenever that happened, he thought of the true friend and the wonder returned.

The feelings returned.

A smile, a tear, a shout, a laugh - they came back.

All because of the true friend and the feelings he had the ability to make him feel.


	7. G - Gossip

**Guys there are literally no words beginning with 'G' that gave me inspiration. I could get a better prompt from an uncooked piece of spaghetti! Oh well, this is what I managed. I dunno I guess it's alright. A little bit light and funny. It took me a really long time to think about a topic which Haru would actually care about and here it is! I think this is a little bit more fluffy than the last one which is what I wanted... (don't want to go piling angst on everyone of you, do I?). Yes, so enjoy this one-shotwhichismorelikeahalf-shotbecauseit'ssoshort ~**

**Olivia. x**

**G**ossip

"I can't believe what I just heard! Ugh, the girls in our class are crazy. They spend their days gossiping and gossiping and bitching and gossiping."

"What did you hear?"

"Well apparently Naomi - you know Naomi?"

"No."

"She's in our class!"

"I know practically no-one in our class except the people I need to."

"Well, I know her."

"Good. Continue?"

"Fine. I heard from her that Mari and Nagisa are going on a date on Tuesday."

"Nagisa? A date?"

"Yeah! To the cinema to see that new sci-fi film. I bet Rei's jealous."

"I don't think so."

"Haven't you seen the way he looks at Nagisa?"

"Rei? No way. If anyone fancies the other there it's Nagisa fancying Rei."

"I used to think that too, but apparently he has eyes for other people."

"Wait, who asked the other out?"

"I dunno. Hold on, I'll text Naomi."

"Okay."

"... Ah, she says she thinks it was Mari."

"See!"

"I guess you're right." M

"To be honest though, I don't think they view each other that way." H

"Who? Nagisa and Mari?" M

"No! Nagisa and Rei." H

"Hmm I suppose."

"Plus, doesn't Rei have a girlfriend?"

"What, really?"

"Yeah."

"I didn't know this! Who is she?"

"I don't know her name."

"Great. Helpful. What's she like?"

"Don't know."

"Is she pretty?"

"Not sure."

"Haru, you suck at this."

"At what?"

"Gossip-"

"What?"

"We're gossiping."

"Are we?"

"Yeah... that's what this is."

"Oh."

"..."

"Kayo."

"What?"

"That's her name."

"Whose name?"

"Rei's girlfriend."

"Oh."

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing I... I think I know her."

"Really?"

"Yeah, she lives down my road... How long have they been a thing?"

"About three months."

"Oh my God she was hitting on me like the other week!"

"Should we tell him?"

"Um no. No, I don't think he should know."

"Okay. Well, I'm going to bed now."

"Alright. Sleep well."

"You too, Makoto."

Then Haru hung up.


	8. H - Hour

**Hey guys! So, this is another one of those 'what the hell is this' thingies like 'F' so I'm not really sure what to christen it. Um, friendship and... er... mystery? Nah, not really. It's more of a relationship study between Haru and Makoto. Set when they're in middle school and in the swimming club. As usual I guess I just let myself go a little and AS USUAL if you don't like it don't sweat it, there'll be others. **

**Olivia. x**

**H**our

"Are you sure about his?"

"Yes."

"What if we get caught?"

"We won't."

"But the team might-"

"Makoto, sh."

The door opened wide and Makoto pressed down on the timer in his hand. It began the hour.

There was one crisp new hour standing before the two as they looked upon the glistening pool. One hour before their seniors would seize the water from them in a frenzied attack which they foolishly dubbed to be 'training.' Haru looked at the deep blue of the shadowed water, eyes reflecting the shimmer with a personal flame. Makoto liked swimming of course, but he never felt that same attraction to it that Haru did. Most people called his friend a weirdo for his love of the feeling of the water agaisnt his skin and no-one (not even Makoto) pretended to understand him all of the time.

Due to the amount of time the two had spent together, Makoto had learnt how to read his friend relatively well and because of his predictability when it came to water, he was easy to manipulate (not that Makoto ever would do that). But when Haruka had suggested breaking into the pool to have more time swimming, the olive-haired boy did have to do a double-take. Breaking and entering? Wasn't that... illegal?

Not that Makoto and Haru cared. They knew it wasn't a case of whether it was right or just, it was a case of whether the pair of friends could escape the escapade unscathed. The water was always on Haruka's side, but would it protect them from a harsh scolding and any punishment that could emerge? Perhaps not. After all, it wasn't alive and it couldn't speak to defend them. These thoughts swirled in Makoto's brain as he watched his friend step up to the edge.

3... 2...

"Haru, don't!" Makoto hissed, suddenly decided against the plan.

1.

The black-haired boy submerged himself in the life source and began doing perfectly smooth strokes through the surface. Makoto Tachibana looked about the place nervously before joining him. It was practically alien to him.

The water was dark and the air was bountiful. It sunk through the practice area with an unfamiliar access which Makoto refrained himself from looking into too deeply. Instead, he found himself swimming leisurely. One hour. Would that hour be much of the same? Eventually, he noticed Haru had stopped swimming and was just sitting in the slightly shallow end, chin and mouth below the surface, eyes closed. Makoto made his way over.

"Haru...?" He cracked open an eye, then closed it again. He straightened up so that his chin rested on the water and spoke.

"Is the hour up?"

"Almost. It has been fun though. I'm... Glad we came."

"So am I."

"When the seniors come... They'll ruin the water." Haru smiled a little at this. No one ever saw the water as a thing with a soul and a conscience and a heart as he did. It helped him, he helped it. Makoto tried to see things as he did, but struggled in most of his attempts.

"Nothing can ruin the water, Makoto." Makoto hummed a little and stood, offering a hand to Haru. He accepted and stood too.

"What about

An hour was all they'd had, but they'd spent that hour in each other's was the first slightly rebellious thing they did together and as a result, both became almost experts at finding and causing trouble, especially when it came to breaking into pools.


	9. I - Illness

**Waddup, broskis? So, as a personal self-acclaimed whump addict I decided to slip a teensy weensy bit of it into this story (don't worry, I wouldn't be surprised if there ended up being more). Haven't I done whump in this story before? Hm. This one's a little funny and a little cue at the same time. I dunno I'm pretty happy with it. Enjoy, guys ~**

**Olivia. x**

**Il**l

For many, getting ill was something which was not easily avoided. For some, it was practically alien to them yet to others it was practically always present. Haruka Nanase was a classic example of the second. Barely ever did Haru find himself ill (perhaps twice in his life, once within his memory) but when he did he certainly did not do it by half. He could clearly remember the time he contracted flu for three weeks and had to spend a further two weeks off from school because of the numbness in his legs and arms due to all of the bed rest.

That had been when he was eight, and not one time had he fallen ill since. Ah, well... there goes that record.

He'd insisted for many days that there was simply nothing wrong, despite his friends' concerned glances and occasional comments, especially when Ama-chan had even noticed.

_"Haruka, do you want to go home early today? You look a little under the weather," Ama-chan asked. Haru would've said yes if it hadn't been for the patronizing tone and the sickenign smile. Looking back on it, she was only trying to help him but his sickness-addled mind didn't see it that way. _

_"I'm fine."_

Of course Makoto had noticed first as they were walking to school.

_He stumbled a lot as he walked, fatigue overtaking his normal strides. Makoto didn't notice at first, but when Haru started lagging so much Makoto had to stop, he certainly did._

_"Haru... should we turn back?"_

How different would it have been if Haruka had said yes?

Reflecting on the past was all Haru could really do at that moment in time. Unfortunately (as you may have guessed) he did not look after himself and instead rendered himself subject to the weariness and the pain. He had currently had... um, three days off from school and felt no better for it.

Everyday he slept and every night he slept. Makoto came and stayed often, for hours on end. Haru felt bad for not being able to offer any conversation or entertainment, but there was no strength in him to keep either going. He'd tried talking about the day's adventures at school, but after about two sentences his throat shrivelled and his mind clouded. Needless to say, words were neither coming out of his mouth or forming in his mind. It was... embarrassing.

This was the first time he'd been awake for over five minutes with his eyes open and he had been staring at the black around him, thinking about the mistakes he'd made in the past few days. Haru let out a dry cough.

It could've been anytime really, because the blinds were shut to the point of only letting in darkness all day and all night. It was disorientating, but Haru had always been good at sensing the time so he deduced that it was... around 6. He could hear Makoto talking quietly next to him, so it wasn't too late. Oh... Makoto was talking...

"-better, Haru. Nagisa says he's going to bring cookies later. You'll want to eat those, yeah?"

"... Not really," Haru let out a sigh as he spoke. The thought of food made him feel worse.

Ugh. He hated being ill.

"Well, something to drink? I could... blend it?" Makoto was smiling, Haru could hear it in his voice. It still sounded like a sugary mixture of hell, but Haru smiled a little too at the idea.

"Maybe."

"I'll make it exciting..."

Haru shut his eyes and let out a sound which would hopefully be construed as something questioning.

"A little insentive for you. Nagisa'll be really sad if you don't ea- drink his cookies."

"What... what is it?"

"Well, if you drink the cookies I'll... um... I'll pay you."

"Don't... want your... money."

"Alright... I'll," then Makoto's eyes lit up. He knes how to get Haru to listen to him, "I'll dress up as a chicken tomorrow."

Silence.

_Got him, _Makoto thought. He was desperate for Haru to eat something, even if it was cookie mush.

"De-al," Haru muttered, throat seizing and eyelids becoming heavy. Makoto shushed hims and told him to rest until Nagisa and the others arrived. He didn't need to be told twice.

* * *

"Shut _up!" _Gou muttered to the two boys next to her who were giggling and chatting (well, Nagisa was... Rei was just nodding occasionally). They were all fairly squashed up on the only sofa in the lounge, juggling school-bags and baskets because no-one had thought to but them on the floor except for Rei who was interrupted before the suggestion was fully out of his mouth.

After a few minutes, Makoto emerged. He was still dressed in his school uniform, but there was not jumper and his sleeves were rolled up. A few buttons were undone and the tie loosened dramatically. All of this coupled with the sticky-up hair, it didn't take a genius to work out that Makoto had been working hard.

"Can we see him?"

"Sure, just be quiet. One person speaking at a time," Makoto said, pointing a sharp look at Nagisa who looked at the ground.

When the group all trudged into Haru's room, it was minus Makoto who had disappeared to blend some cookies.

"Haru-chan!"

"Sh!"

"Sorry... hey, Haru-chan," Nagisa murmered, quieter by a mile. Makoto had decided to open the blinds for a little while, convinced that a little light would be good for Haru.

Makoto came back with a glass.

"Here you go, Haru..." he whispered. Haru took the glass.

It wouldn't be a lie to say it looked appetising, but then it wouldn't exactly be _true. _

Slowly and hesitantly he sipped some of the brown liquid. It was a struggle to slip down his throat, but it was rewarded in the simple deliciousness of it. With that sip came a thirst for more and carefully he downed the whole thing, shakily complementing Nagisa when it was finished.

After exhausting shatter and a few giggles, the group (except for Makoto) left.

"I... win..."

"You'll get your prize tomorrow, Haru..."

"Ha... I... look forward to it..."

Haru fell asleep with a smirk.


End file.
